This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 233

Dogun’s Perspective

It felt as if I were watching a rubber band stretched to its limit.

The atmosphere was that tense.

And in that unbearably taut atmosphere, the first to break the silence was none other than Yoonseo.

“Winter honestly feels a bit off, doesn’t it?”

The surprising part was that Yoonseo had set her sights on none other than the Senior.

“…What’s wrong with Winter?”

“No, I mean, it’s not like it’s a puppy or anything…”

To be honest?

There was a hint of something there.

It just seemed like a name that would suit a puppy better than a cat.

Especially if it were a fluffy Samoyed with pure white fur—it would fit perfectly.

“And saying it’s called Winter just because we met in winter feels pretty half-hearted…”

Anyway, having made her claim, when names were challenged, it seemed Senior couldn’t just sit back.

“If we’re going by that logic, isn’t Miya even less sincere than Winter?”

“What’s wrong with Miya? It suits her, doesn’t it?”

“I mean, it looks like you named her Miya just because she goes ‘Miyaw’—what’s the difference between that and calling a dog Woof just because it barks?”

By that logic, shouldn’t Yoonseo be named Chirp since she often goes ‘chirp’?

Such trivial thoughts zipped through my mind, but I didn’t dare voice such foolishness.

After all, in a situation like this, drawing attention to myself would do me no good.

So, I tightened my lips and thought, ‘I wonder when we’ll eat dinner…’ but right at that moment, Chae-rim stepped in to mediate.

“If both names seem off, why don’t we just go with what I suggested—Dudu?”

The problem was the way she threw the comment out.

While everyone was arguing about which of the options A or B was better, suddenly C options were thrown into the mix, and both Yoonseo and the Senior had no choice but to react sharply.

The intense glares they had been throwing at each other sharpened even further.

And before that tension could turn to Chae-rim—

“But why Dudu of all names?”

Bora, who was watching quietly, took a step forward and casually slipped into the conversation.

“Huh? Why Dudu, you ask?”

“Yeah, just wondering if it has some special meaning.”

“Nothing like that. Isn’t the name Dudu just cute? Right, Dudu?”

If it had been any other time?

The discussion would have probably wrapped up by now.

After all, among those present, Chae-rim had as much say as I did.

But for some reason today, nobody seemed inclined to yield.

“If that’s the case, wouldn’t Ink be better?”

“…Huh?”

“Honestly, the name Ink sounds cuter and more refined than Dudu.”

“No way, what does that even mean… If that’s the case, you might as well call it Blackie.”

And that was just the beginning.

It seemed like since everyone was playfully throwing jabs at each other, no one had any intention of backing down.

Not only the four names previously mentioned but a few more names also made their grand appearance on the table.

“Or how about ‘Noah’?”

“Let’s go with ‘Lafi’ instead.”

“That’s not a butterfly; what even is Lafi? If that’s the case, might as well call it Butterfly.”

“But Butterfly sounds like an outdated name. I’m no grandmother…”

“…What?”

Of course, every time a new name popped up, a rebuttal followed suit.

What was I doing during that chaos?

Naturally, I kept my mouth shut and stayed out of it.

Eventually, I grew so anxious that slipping away to the kitchen quietly while they passionately debated what was better felt like my best option.

And I had already thought up a good excuse in case I got caught.

Choosing names was great, but we still had to eat, didn’t we?

‘This is just…’

I hadn’t anticipated making rice balls for this situation at all.

It had been the quickest and most convenient menu choice for me, but somehow I ended up picking one that fit the current situation perfectly.

As a result, I was feeling quite conflicted about it.

So, after making a bitter smile for a bit, I quickly reheated what had gone cold.

I carefully filled plates or bowls with the reheated food so as not to attract too much attention and brought them into the living room where the four were still having their debate.

‘Wait, it’s still not over?’

Are you kidding me? We’re this close and only need to set down the spoons and chopsticks!

That sudden feeling of panic must have gotten to me.

Despite my best efforts to avoid pulling their attention, the items in my hands clattered against the table, echoing noisily in all directions.

During the time I had been making trips back and forth between the kitchen and the living room, had the disagreement heated up?

The once sharp daggers of glances had turned into piercing stares like they had all planned something together.

And the moment all four pairs of eyes locked onto me, I instinctively realized.

‘Oh…’

Something had gone seriously wrong.

Sure enough, before I could even finish that thought, three out of the four faces brightened visibly as they exclaimed—

“Since things have come to this, we can just ask Dogun to decide!”

It was uncanny how those words, the ones I least wanted to hear at that moment, spilled out of Chae-rim’s mouth.

“Shall we then?”

“Yeah, after all, Dogun’s opinion matters too…”

The moment someone said that, Yoonseo and Senior jumped on board with Chae-rim’s suggestion, as if they had been waiting for just that.

‘Oh no…’

The very scenario I had worried about and fought against had come to pass.

Was it really such a grave sin just for trying to get some food?

Staring into those eyes, I could already feel the tension rising in my stomach.

Look at those eyes—they believed without a doubt I’d choose their side.

And it wasn’t just one or two of them; there were three of them staring at me.

If I chose one, the other two would surely sulk.

Though they didn’t seem to expect much, Bora was also giving me subtle glances, signaling she’d be hurt if I didn’t choose her.

In short, no matter what I chose, my decision would never be right.

But here I was, being forced to make a choice.

Sigh…

‘If it’s going to be like this…’

Why not just let everyone call it what they want?

Why are they doing this to me?

While I was silently chuckling at the absurdity of it all, a brilliant idea suddenly flashed in my mind.

“Umm… I think they all sound fine…”

I put on the perfect expression to mask the awkwardness I felt and said those words, but the reaction was far from favorable.

Perhaps they were tired from the prolonged debate and expected me to make a decision once and for all.

“What’s that? It’s just that we can’t settle on one, can we? We need to decide on one here and move on.”

“So how about we try this instead?”

“Uh? How?”

Ignoring their puzzled expressions, I stood up from my seat, grabbed four sheets of paper of just the right size, and handed them each a pen.

“Write down the name you’d like.”

Then—

“Do we really have to go this far…?”

Holding the papers with the names written on them, I lined them up in a row.

Of course, it was natural for there to be some resistance along the way.

Yoonseo, for instance, seemed a bit embarrassed, blushing as she asked if we had to go this far.

“Choosing your own name gives you the right to make your own choice.”

Naturally, I didn’t feel obliged to accommodate everyone’s feelings, so I just brushed her off with logic.

“Sure, if you’re embarrassing, you can just sit this one out.”

And it was none other than Senior Baeksulhwa who backed me up on that.

“Who’s backing out?!”

Since I was okay with it, it felt like Yoonseo had no choice but to join her competitors over on the side.

Once the four of them stood side by side…

I opened the carrier I had set down on the floor early on.

The moment the star of the day emerged—

I couldn’t help but doubt my own ears.

Because—

“Meow…”

Of all people, it was Bora, her face turning bright red, who began to make that sound.